Friday, March 21, 2014

TCM Film Festival 2014 – Updates and What We're Excited About



The highly coveted full shedule for the 2014 TCM Film Festival was posted yesterday. You can find it here and they also posted the full list of special guests here. I also have TCM’s official press release about the new updates on my Google+ page  (As a side note, I’m posting a lot more interesting content on my Google+ page for this blog. Press releases, interesting links, photos, news bits, etc. I highly suggest you follow it!) The festival’s theme is Family in the Movies: The Ties that Bind  with sub-themes including Dysfunctional Families, Single Mothers, Sister Acts, Aging Parents and Daddy/Daughter films. April marks the 20th anniversary of TCM so there will be various events celebrating that big milestone as well!

My husband and I will be attending the festival again this year. Carlos has a Matinee pass and I have a Media pass. We went through the festival schedule last night and picked out all of the events we were most looking forward to. We gleamed a lot from our experience last year and our approach to working out a schedule will be different this time around. We are trying to keep our schedules more flexible, adding in time to eat, making sure we note the locations and if it’s feasible to travel from one venue to another in the allotted time and allowing for sleep! I know that a lot of folks will cram as much as they can into their festival experience and have fun doing it. That’s just not my style. I wish it were though because I’d get so much more experience in! But alas, I’m that type of introvert who easily gets overwhelmed when too much is going on so I think a more open and flexible schedule works for me. I probably won’t post my schedule for the festival this year but wanted to point out what both Carlos and I are excited about.

Thursday
Welcome Party/TCM at 20 Exhibit at Club TCM – I’m excited that actress Kim Novak will be there along with many other special guests and Robert Osborne of course! I had a lot of fun at Club TCM last year so I’m really looking forward to spending quality time there this year as well.

American Graffiti (1973) Poolside screening at the Hollywood Roosevelt Hotel – The poolside screening last year for South Pacific was one of my favorite experiences last year so I’d love to do another one! Actors Candy Clark, Bo Hopkins and Paul Le Mat will be there. This film was part of that early college experience that made me fall in love with old movies (along with Out of the Past, Citizen Kane, Singin’ in the Rain, etc.).

Bachelor Mother (1939) at the TCL Chinese Multiplex – I almost screamed when I saw this! My number #1 favorite movie of all time on the big screen. I can’t miss this.

Friday
Charlton Heston Stamp Dedication Ceremony or On Approval (1944) at the TCL Chinese Theatres – It’s a toss up for me for both of these.

East of Eden (1955) at the TCL Chinese Multiplex and Touch of Evil (1958) at the TCL Chinese IMAX – Carlos hasn’t seen either of these films and is eager to watch both of them for the first time! He had to abandon the idea of attending the Zulu (1964) screening which is being presented by Alex Trebek. Seeing Trebek last year was Carlos’ favorite memory of TCMFF.

The World of Henry Orient (1964) at the TCL Chinese Multiplex – Paula Prentiss will be there!

Meet Me in St. Louis (1944) at the TCL Chinese IMAX – Actress Margaret O’Brien will be there! It’s not even one of my favorite movies but I do adore O’Brien and am super excited to see her.

Invasion of the Body Snatchers (1956) at Grauman's Egyptian – This one is all Carlos!

Double Indemnity (1944) at the TCL Chinese IMAX – Carlos will be taking his chances in the standby line to get in.

A Conversation with Quincy Jones at Club TCM

Blazing Saddles (1974) at TCL Chinese IMAX – 40th anniversary screening with Mel Brooks in attendance. I think this will be one of the most sought after screenings!

Saturday 

Hand and Footprint Ceremony with Jerry Lewis in front of the TCL Chinese IMAX – Last year’s ceremony with Jane Fonda was quite wonderful even though I only got to view it from across the street! I hope to be closer to the action this year.

Father of the Bride (1950) at the Egyptian and The Jungle Book (1967) at El Capitan – These are our back-ups if we don’t get in for the Jerry Lewis ceremony. Both these films have emotional significance to us.

The Good, the Bad and the Ugly (1966) at the TCL Chinese IMAX – This is number one on Carlos’ list of must-see screenings at the festival. It’s a favorite film of his and seeing it on the big screen will be a personal highlight.

How Green Was My Valley (1941) at El Capitan – Actress Maureen O’Hara will be in attendance.

Bell, Book and Candle (1958) at Grauman's Egyptian – Actress Kim Novak will be in attendance and it’s a quirky favorite film of mine!

A Hard Day’s Night (1964) TCL Chinese IMAX – Alec Baldwin and Don Was will be in attendance. Carlos loves the Beatles and music from that era in general so this is a must-see for him. It’ll also be tricky because he’ll have to try to get in on standby.

The Women (1939) at El Capitan – There’s no way I’m missing this one! One of my favorite films of all time, a beloved classic and Norma Shearer!

The Pawnbroker (1964) at Grauman's Egyptian – Carlos won’t be able to attend the Club TCM event with Quincy Jones so he’ll take his chances in the standby line for this one.

Sunday 

Fiddler on the Roof (1971) at the TCL Chinese IMAX – I don’t have much interest in this film except for the fact that it’s directed by Norman Jewison and he will be in attendance! Who knows, maybe this will become a new favorite?

Live From the TCM Classic Film Festival at The Montalban Theatre – They haven’t announced the guest for this yet. Isn’t that strange? I wonder if they are holding out for someone really big. If it’s who I think it is I will clear the schedule and set up camp at the entrance to be one of the first to get in. I attending this 2 hour filming last year with Eva Marie Saint and had a blast. Here’s a tease from TCM:

TBAs – There were some great movies chosen for the TBA slots last year so I'm looking forward to see if I can attend any of these.

The Wizard of Oz (1939) in 3D IMAX at the TCL Chinese IMAX – Both Carlos and I are super excited about this one. I was skeptical at first at the idea of this film in 3D and on IMAX until George Feltenstein from Warner Archive personally recommended it on the Warner Archive Podcast.

Closing Night Party at Club TCM 

I’m sad to miss out on some of the screenings I was initially looking forward to. I really wanted to see Grey Gardens, The Best Year of Our Lives, Double Indemnity, etc. They’ll have to be back-ups. I know for sure that I will NOT be at the Make Way for Tomorrow or The Quiet Man screenings. We plan on having plenty of back-ups. It's all about having a plan but leaving room for change too. I'm sure there will be more announcements and we'll have to shuffle a few things around.

Are you going to the festival? Which screenings or events are you looking forward to the most?

2 comments:

  1. I love your post -- now I'm even more excited. I think I'm most looking forward to Blazing Saddles, followed by my first viewing on the big screen of one of my favorites (and certainly the one I've seen the most!) The Women. Also looking forward to seeing more movies that I've never seen before, like Hat Check Girl.

    ReplyDelete
  2. Nice about a third of your top choices coincide with mine.

    ReplyDelete

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